Technologies, issues and policies for sustainable mobility.

March 2017

March 31, 2017

Vehicle tailpipes are a more important source of ammonia’s contribution to urban air pollution than is agriculture, according to a study by researchers from the US and China. The paper is published in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology.

Atmospheric ammonia (NH3) reacts with nitric and sulfuric acids to form nitrate and sulfate aerosols, a key component of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). About 80% of airborne ammonia comes from farming practices such as fertilization, so it seems a likely suspect for the ammonia in haze particles to come from plumes of large farms and then be transported to urban centers. Instead, the research team found that ammonia emissions from cities are much larger than recognized, occur at the very times when unhealthy particulate matter is at its worst, and when agricultural emissions are at daily or seasonal lows.

Porsche unveiled the new 919 Hybrid at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza (IT). The Le Mans prototype, with a system output of around 900 PS (662 kW), was comprehensively reworked.

The 2017 model of the Porsche 919 Hybrid deploys a range of new innovations, particularly in the vehicle’s aerodynamics, the chassis and the combustion engine. Team Principal Andreas Seidl, who continues to serve as acting technical director, said that for the 2017 season, 60 to 70 percent of the vehicle is newly developed.

Shell opened a new major technology hub in Bangalore, India, expanding the company’s R&D activities in Asia. The 52-acre, custom built technology centre can house up to 1,500 experts working collaboratively on innovative projects worldwide.

Current state-of-the-art heavy duty diesel engines are both highly efficient and offer low emissions. However, in real-world driving, fuel efficiency and emissions aftertreatment technologies interact with each other and also vary according to the vehicle application, its prevailing operating conditions and its mission.

The IMPERIUM project (IMplementation of Powertrain control for Economic, low Real driving emIssions and fuel ConsUMption) is a major EU-funded research initiative (€10 million total, €6.6 million from the EU) comprising a total of 17 industrial and academic partners. The main objective of the project is to reduce fuel consumption by 20% (diesel and urea) against the project’s 2014 Euro VI baseline vehicle, while keeping the vehicle within the legal limits for pollutant emissions.

The new Volkswagen Golf with its most modern engine generation, the Millerized 1.5 TSI Evo (110 kW / 150 PS) (earlier post, earlier post), is now available to order in Europe. The four-cylinder gasoline engine features common rail direct injection, turbocharger and Active Cylinder Management (ACT).

IBM scientists have been granted a patent around a machine learning system that can dynamically shift control of an autonomous vehicle between a human driver and a vehicle control processor in the event of a potential emergency, providing a safety measure that can contribute to accident prevention.

IBM researchers developed the patented system using their understanding of biological cognition and behavior generation in the brain. Their background as computational neuroscientists led the inventors to devise a cognitive model and technique that employs sensors and artificial intelligence to dynamically determine potential safety concerns and control whether self-driving vehicles are operated autonomously or by relinquishing control to a human driver.

The addition of hydrogen produced by renewable sources (e.g., electrolysis powered by renewable electricity) to natural gas supports the decarbonization of the natural gas system and integration of sustainable energy sources. However, the properties of hydrogen differ significantly from those of natural gas, and its introduction into the gas infrastructure may negatively impact public safety, the integrity of the gas system and the performance of end-use equipment.

The HYREADY joint industry project (JIP), led by DNV GL, intends to encourage the industry to “Be ready for Hydrogen” by developing practical processes and procedures for the introduction of hydrogen to the grid. HYREADY focuses on the consequences of H2 added to natural gas in an existing
specific network and on feasible countermeasures to mitigate these consequences.

Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) announced that new research on power-to-gas technology shows the technique holds the ability to significantly increase the use of intermittent renewable energy. The finding came out of ongoing research conducted at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) and funded by SoCalGas.

Preliminary research findings, announced this week at UCI’s International Colloquium on Environmentally Preferred Advanced Generation (ICEPAG), demonstrated that the campus microgrid could increase the portion of renewable energy it uses from 3.5% to 35% by implementing a power-to-gas strategy.

March 30, 2017

Ford is investing an additional C$500-million (US$375 million) in its Canadian research and development presence, adding connectivity software and hardware engineers and establishing a new Ottawa Research and Engineering Center. Ford is adding more than 400 connectivity engineers in Canada and the US—approximately 300 of whom will be based in Canada—more than doubling Ford’s mobile connectivity engineering team.

The new Ottawa Research and Engineering Center in Canada will focus on research and development across infotainment, in-vehicle modems, gateway modules, driver-assist features and autonomous vehicles.